Select a champion, customize it to your liking and head into an intense MMOFPS battle

Experience an improved yet iconically fast-paced Quake gameplay backed with incredible graphics

Enjoy a “fragging” good time in team-based matches or solo ones on the game’s brilliantly-designed maps

Quake is the epitome of a classic MMOFPS game and following in this timeless game’s wake is Bethesda’s latest attempt at revitalizing the franchise, Quake Champions. Featuring incredible graphics, deviously-designed maps, a selection of champions along with a wide range of customization options, and, of course, the intensely fast-paced gameplay, Quake Champion might just be able to push the Quake franchise back into the limelight and start off a brand-new eSports series for competitive players.

The game starts by introducing something different right off the bat – champions (and hence the name)! Taking a page of out of games like Team Fortress 2 where the characters are an integral part of the gameplay, the 9 unique champions provided changes up the game experience mainly because they are each played very differently. After all, each champion in this game has their own set of stats as well as 1 active and 1 passive abilities.

The appearances of the champions can be customized with outfits (vanity item) as well. You can usually get them from loot boxes that are rewarded to random players after a match regardless of the score, but you can also buy them at the in-game shop.

Unfortunately, unless you’re willing to spend real money, you won’t be able to unlock a champion permanently... except for the default champion, the Ranger. Instead, you can only rent a champion for a limited amount of time using in-game currency. In some way, this is a rather fair method for monetizing the champions.

The game also provides an awesome selection of game modes too! There are 4 game modes at the moment, namely Deathmatch (DM), Team Deathmatch (TDM), Duel, and Sacrifice. Duel mode is essentially a 1-on-1 match of 3 rounds whereby each player has to bring along 3 different champions. Sacrifice, on the other hand, is like a standard TDM game, except that your team will have 2 main objectives – 1. Capture obelisks and 2. Sacrifice souls (by getting kills) to please the Elder Gods. Most queue times for DM and TDM are reasonable, but for Sacrifice, you must be willing to wait twice or thrice as long just to get into a match.

So, you’ve scored a match... now what? Well, let’s take a look at the game’s frag-atastic combat! Quake Champions features a much more improved version of the classic Quake, but it retains many of the elements that had made Quake so popular back then, such as the fast-paced gameplay (but not mind-boggling so), and the arcade-like style of movement (a lot of jumping involved) and combat.

Like the Quake before it, there are power-ups and weapons that you can pick up scattered across designated spawn sites across the map. These weapons ranges from the sniper-like Railgun to the Lightning gun, while power-ups include Mega Health, Power-Up and Armor. Ammo is also limited in Quake Champions, so be sure to collect ammo packs too.

Overall, it’s safe to say that the combat in this game feels exhilarating not only because of the speed and the emphasis it places on reflexes and shooting tactics. Nevertheless, there are still parts in the gameplay that may require some improvement, such as the hit boxes, champion balancing, and scoping.

Quake Champions also has plenty more features to offer, including daily challenges where you can get more loot boxes or currency, a crafting system for outfits using shards, player profile customization, as well as an in-game shop since the game’s going to be a freemium game. Currently, the shop is selling only champions and loot boxes, but it will likely add bundles/packs and consumables later.

That said, the game has a rather huge following even before its release due to it being a Quake game and its community is only expected to grow after its launch. The game is likely to become an eSport game due to its highly competitive aspect.

In terms of graphics and sound, the game did brilliantly in both sectors. I personally love how interactive and beautifully-designed their maps are. This is evident in the Ruins of Sarnath where there’s a gigantic eyeball that actually tracks your movement if you’re close enough. It’s both creepy and awesome!

In short, Quake Champions is a solid and modern addition to the Quake franchise that will appeal to both old and new competitive players alike. It doesn’t only pay homage to the timeless MMO shooter; it also improves on the usual Quake formula, bringing the entire series to greater heights. If you enjoy MMOFPS games that are not merely “clones” of Counter Strike or Call of Duty, then Quake Champions is definitely the sort of game you should check out.

Note: Quake Champions is currently in closed beta. The game is slated for release later this year.